WASHINGTON >> The national unemployment rate fell slightly to 5.6 percent in December, according to new numbers released Friday morning by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The federal labor agency said that America’s employers added 252,000 jobs last month.

The unemployment rate in September had been 5.8 percent.

The BLS reports that the number of unemployed people also fell to 8.7 million. Sectors of the economy that added the most jobs in December included professional and business services, construction, food services and drinking places, health care and manufacturing.

Some 2.8 million people have been unemployed for more than six months, the bureau estimates. Those long-term unemployed people account for about 32 percent of the jobless population in America.

Friday’s jobs numbers come just a few days after Congress was sworn in with Republican majorities in the House and Senate. Republicans have said that job creation is one of their legislative priorities and approval of the Keystone XL pipeline would be an important part of helping the economy bounce back.